Catching Starlight
by amyjpond
Summary: A trailing pin light lit up the corner of his vision and his head snapped to witness the flight of a shooting star graze the planet's atmosphere. His eyes stayed fixed on the fire trail as a slow boyish grin seeped across his face. "Should I make a wish, big guy?" He addressed the moon with a sly expression. / Stardust inspired.
1. prologue

**A/N:** Hey guys! New story! This story is influenced by the movie _Stardust_, and so you might see some similarities between the two. However, it's not a crossover and deals with an oc character along with the Guardians in their respective verse. It doesn't just deal with Jack, but with all of the Guardians and a new character of my own. It takes place about 2-3 years after the movie, and Pitch is up to no good, as you can suspect, haha. ;)

Disclaimer: I do not own Rise of the Guardians and CS has influence from _Stardust_. As much as I wish I owned them both, I sadly do not.

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**PROLOGUE: **

"Bunny, it better be good reason you are here." North spoke over his shoulder as the large rabbit emerged from the shadows behind him. Blue eyes stayed fixed on the long list in front of him as he checked off names one by one, his large shoulders hunched over the table in concentration.

"Look, I know it's the day before Christmas. Crikey, I wouldn't do this if it wasn't important." Bunnymund paused as the bigger man turned slowly, a thick eyebrow arched. "I saw him. _He's back_." He finished with a slight hitch in his voice.

"Who?" North's expression had grown darker, and although the question seemed redundant, he asked it anyways.

"Over the Rockies, there was this dark… cloud," Bunnymund looked away from the hard look in North's eyes. "And this terrible _screaming_ noise. Woke half the mountain side." His eyes flickered up with a nervous expression. "It's Pitch alright. But it's something more."

Klaus put down his marker, stiff tension noticeable in his jaw and arms. "We knew he would not be kept down forever, but he can be stopped. We will just handle him like last time." His thick accent was confidently calm, but he was already starting to pace.

"But it's not just Pitch," He protested. "Something else was helping him, something terrible. I felt it all the way in my _tunnels_, North." The rabbit wasn't prone to admitting when he was nervous, but he couldn't help the pleading tone his voice had taken. His ear twitched before he breathed a sigh, collecting himself. "Christmas or not, Pitch is planning something far worse than before, mate."

North ran a hand over his face and he gripped the table. "We must call the others," His voice sounded tired to his own ears, the stress of Christmas evident on his face. Bunnymund started to speak, but North held up a hand. "But not now. Pitch and his tricks will have to wait; he will not ruin Christmas." North set his jaw firmly.

Bunnymund eyed him skeptically, but nodded nevertheless. He understood. He didn't like the feeling he got, but he understood.

"Alright, the day after." He agreed grimly.

"Good."

The Bunny bobbed his head once, the air thick with silence. "I'll take my leave then," He turned before throwing in a tentative, "Good luck tomorrow, North."

He was just about to disappear in through to his tunnel when North stopped him. "Wait."

Bunnymund turned inquisitively towards the bearded man, his brows drawn together. North seemed at loss for words.

"What…" He trailed off before fixing Bunnymund with a steady gaze, "What was he doing?"

The rabbit rocked back on his heels, swallowing the uneasiness in his stomach. "I didn't get a real good look," He admitted. "Pitch was there and something else too. There was this dark cloud, which had, had a head of a skull, _just grinning_. It was black and huge, and it just kept billowing up and up like smoke." He shivered. "And it was reaching up towards the moon making this horrible, terrible noise. Loud enough to make the ground shake…" Bunnymund gripped his boomerang absently, his words trailing off.

They stood staring at each other for a moment, North's expression uncharacteristically blank other than the furrowed brows. Bunnymund wondered if he would change his mind, hoped he would, but was left disappointed when Klaus dropped his head in a nod before turning away back to his work.

And so he left.

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Jack could hear the distant hollering as he watched North's sleigh rocket into the distance, and would have caught up to him if he hadn't known the man still had a couple million more houses to go in Canada and Greenland.

His attention cut down to the small town in the valley before him, dusted with freshly fallen snow. Colourful lights swung lazily in the chilly breeze and set off the harsh white so that it glowed reds, blues, greens and yellows. Jack could take some credit for making it a magical Christmas; he had been responsible for the snowfall after all. With a small smile on his face, Jack slumped against his staff high in the bare branches of a towering oak, his eyes settling on a specific house in the distance.

He'd made Jamie a promise two years ago that he'd be there for every Christmas, to make sure it was always white. He hadn't broken his promise yet, and had every intention to continue over the up coming decades, or centuries even.

_Centuries_, he'd still be around for centuries. As much as having the guardians a newfound constant in his life, his stomach knotted together at the thought. Now that children actually believed in him, specifically Jamie, it became clearer that sooner or later, memories of them would be all that would remain. It wasn't exactly a revolutionary idea to him, given he'd been around for 300 years, but it had a new sting. He'd stay the same as Jamie grew old and died –

No, he wouldn't think about seeing Jamie older than twenty, at most. Not just yet. _Geez, Jack, keep it together. It's Christmas_.

The moon was especially bright that night and Jack couldn't help but cast a wry grin towards it. What a blessed curse he had put him in. The moonbeams set off his white hair as he jumped gracefully to his feet, the branch bowing under his weight as he did so. "You know, Rudolph is probably a bit resentful of you, given that his nose is supposed to light the way through the darkest of Christmas nights. You're putting him out of a job." He chuckled.

"Well, you can't be all to blame. The stars are especially bright tonight, too." He gestured to the pulsing flecks to light in the night sky, a cold breeze ruffling his hoodie and hair as he did so. A swirl of snow flew up from the surrounding branches and Jack gleefully watched as they blew upwards in a shimmering shower of flakes.

It was then that he saw it.

A trailing pin light lit up the corner of his vision and his head snapped to witness the flight of a shooting star graze the planet's atmosphere. His eyes stayed fixed on the fire trail as a slow boyish grin seeped across his face. "Should I make a wish, big guy?" He addressed the moon with a sly expression, before turning his head to watch the light before it blinked out of existence.

"I wish, " He began, only to draw a gasp of shock. The light seemed to explode across the night's sky, billowing purple, gold and blue. A shimmering figure of light hurdled towards the trees beyond, clearer and more distinct from before. Jack stood in shock as it disappeared over the horizon, before he leapt from his perch and into the wind in one fluid motion.

"Wind, take me down."

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A/N: Tada! Catch you guys on the flipside soon!


	2. fish out of water

A/N: I decided to upload the first chapter for you all, even if it's only been about 12 hours. It can either be looked at as a tease or a blessing. Thank you so much to the positive feed back so far! Especially to the two reviews: I'm glad you're enjoying it! Now exams have taken a bit of a toll on me so forgive me for any mistakes. This chapter is heavily focused on Jack and our new found star, so look out for the other guardians next chapter! And without further or do, the disclaimers.

Disclaimer: Sadly I do not own Rise of the Guardians. Neither do I own the movie Stardust, which influences this story. Merci!

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**_ ; 01 _**

_FISH OUT OF WATER_

It didn't take too long to fly over the ridge, the dark forest panning out in all directions. It did, however, take some time to figure out which direction the star had fallen, as the bright light had long ago diminished. It could only mean that it had already crashed, and Jack was determined to be the first to discover it.

"It must have fallen somewhere," Jack muttered to himself, his eyes shining with a mix of excitement and frustration. The wind whistled in his ear in agitation and Jack spun to face a new direction. He had very distinctively seen something fall, something incredibly bright and fiery; there was no way it could have been his imagination. What did stars look like when they fell anyhow? He'd never known one to make it past the earth's atmosphere, let alone produce such a fantastical spark of colour. What would it look like when he found it? Perhaps it would resemble a smoldering diamond, or a rock the size of North, he thought with a laugh.

Either way, he hoped he would be lucky enough to find something more than a smoking crater.

Jack scanned the horizon once more, climbing higher and higher as the wind swept him upwards. His eyes finally found it; the trail of grey smoke rising in the distance, a throng of trees bent and crooked from some unimaginable weight.

"_Gotcha_."

He dove down, the forest rising up to meet him as he flew. With a hard twist, he missed the branches of a maple tree and glided with ease over the sleeping woods. He bounced off evergreens and spruce trees, their needles turning white beneath his feet as he plunged deeper into the thicket; what sounded like a wolf's howl cut through the cold. With each jump and turn, Jack laughed and shouted, a mischievous grin on his face as he soared towards the wreckage.

About a mile away, he noticed a glow among the trees, getting stronger and stronger as he approached; it made the smoke appear to be flickering, a ghostly dance between light and ash. But being Jack Frost, he didn't feel compelled to slow down. In fact, he only sped up.

This proved to be a mistake when something small and feathery shot right into his chest.

Taken by surprise, Jack's feet caught on a twisted branch below, causing him to spiral downwards with a cry. The creature at his chest buzzed irritably as they tumbled through the branches, the wind unhelpfully pushing him forwards through the snow covered branches. With a god-awful thump, he crashed ungracefully into a snowdrift between two birch trees.

"_Ow_, what the – " Jack groaned and stopped short when something poked urgently against his chest. Rolling over, a small beak emerged from the snow. "Baby Tooth?" He said in astonishment. "What are you doing here?" When the little tooth fairy sneezed, Jack shook his head in an apology. "Oh, right, sorry. Are you okay? Took me by surprise up there, Tooth." He flashed her a tentative smile as he cupped her up in his hands.

Baby Tooth shook her feathers and squeaked, her pink eyes shining up at him. He sighed and tilted his head to the side as he regarded her. "Next time, tell me when you're following me. That way we can avoid a collision." Jack gave her chin a quick flick with his forefinger, smiling. Baby Tooth rolled her eyes and squeaked in response.

The smell of smoke caught Jack's attention and he slowly raised his head to the odor. Moonlight drifted in through patches of branches and dense pine needles, the forest eerily quiet for Christmas Eve. Jack held his breath as his eyes landed on the crater some yards away, trees broken and twisted from its smoky center. "There it is," He breathed. Baby Tooth peered up at him, and he could tell from the flutter of her wings she was nervous.

He rose from the snow followed by Baby Tooth, who in turn went to hover on his shoulder. Jack squinted at the crater, unable to see clearly inside; it was too deep and the fallen trees were obstructing his vision. "Just a little closer." He whispered, and flipped his staff up into his hands in one fluid motion. Baby Tooth followed tentatively to his right as he walked, her presence familiar and comforting.

Jack didn't know he was holding his breath until he was at the tip of the crater, where he choked unceremoniously. He stood stock-still, and even Baby Tooth was quiet against his neck.

For there, lying in the middle of the crater was a girl.

Her hair was the first thing he noticed; the colour could only be described as close to the shade of smoldering embers, thickly spilled out in a halo around her head. She wore a dress of white and twinkling silver, which danced effortlessly around her feet from the icy wind. The dress looked as if it was meant for an ethereal water sprite than a... the thought trailed off.

Well that might explain why her skin was _illuminated_.

He swallowed thickly, his heart beating faster and faster in his chest. Absently, he took a step forward and he felt Baby Tooth make a noise behind him. His eyes didn't stray from the girl; he was worried if he closed his eyes for a second, she'd disappear.

The crater was fairly steep and he carefully picked his way down, the rocks crystalizing where he stepped. His whole body was tense and Jack felt the unfamiliar feeling of something expanding in his chest, making it hard to breathe. Jack didn't know if it was because he was scared, or something else.

It crossed his mind she might be dead.

With that thought in mind, he crossed the space between them in two strides. Her head was lolled to the side and one arm was turned ungraciously away from her body, but other than that, she seemed fine. Jack crouched down hesitantly next to her and he could see the flutter of her dark lashes against her skin, the very slight rise and fall of her chest; she was alive.

Jack let the bubble within his chest deflate and took a large breath of air, trying to calm the strange sensation crawling up his arms and legs. He'd seen a lot of things in his time on earth, a lot of things as a guardian too, but never had he experienced anything close to this before. A living, breathing, _star_; now that was something that defied the history books.

And now that he was hovering over her, he realized something. He had egoistically thought she'd wake as soon as he'd crouched down next to her, but of course nothing changed. He may be a guardian, but he didn't grant cliché Christmas miracles.

He sat there for a few minutes, eyes expectant as he stared at her face; she had mark next to her ear and soft freckles dusting her collarbone, unusual but pretty. She looked to be around his age; with the same shapelessness of immortality he had associated to those like him. He memorized her face, waiting for her eyes to fly open. Heck, he'd settle for a twitch or cough. But she lay still, unmoving, except for the rise and fall of her chest and the movement behind her lids.

After a while, he glanced at the small fairy with a raised brow. "You think she's okay, Baby Tooth?" She gave him a pointed look. "Other than, you know, falling from space." He amended. He glanced back at the girl, his mouth dipped in a frown.

But she looked fine to him; he couldn't see any particular injuries. Jack sighed and pressed his lips together. His eyes drifted to her upturned palm, her skin still faintly pulsating that strange glow. He tilted his head, momentarily fascinated, and found himself reaching out for it cautiously.

Her palm was soft to the touch as his cold fingers brushed hers. Like lightning, a flash of heat raced up his hand and he pulled away with a cry. Cradling his hand, he stared in shock as goose bumps travelled up her arms, when all at once it was like the breath of life had restored her.

Her chest expanded as her lips drew open, a rosy colour flooding her cheeks and lips that chased away the pale illumination of before. Jack stared, unable to look away as her eyes flew open at last, the colour of dark pine needles. She gasped and turned onto her side to cough, unable to catch her breath.

Without thinking, Jack gripped her by the sleeve in order to steady her, and bits of frost travelled from his fingers onto her dress. "_Hey_, hey, you okay there sleeping beauty?" His asked quietly.

She immediately withdrew from him with a squeak, her wide eyes flying to his as she created deliberate space between them. Jack raised his hands, his eyes holding her gaze. "Woah, sorry. Didn't mean to startle you." He took an awkward step back on his heels while she stuck out her chin defiantly. "Okay, see? I'll stay right here." Jack made a case of pointing to the ground. There was a slight tremble in her lips, but otherwise she seemed to be in control of herself. If anything, she was regarding him with a haughty expression.

Perhaps it was the burst of tension or the face that she pulled, but Jack had to bite back on his laughter. He was forced to turn his face to the side so that she wouldn't see his smirk and managed to brush it off as a cough. A clearly artificial cough, but he digressed.

In response, she narrowed her eyes and pressed her lips together. Suddenly Baby Tooth was at her ear, regarding her thoughtfully. Startled, the girl fell away from the fairy, eyes wide as she looked up at Tooth. Jack looked on with a tilt of his head as the girl studied the fairy with unmasked fear turned wonder, before a smile crept up on her lips. After a brief pause, Baby Tooth beamed happily down at the girl and brushed up against her cheek. The redhead froze before the tension left her shoulders and she hesitantly lifted a slender hand to pat the little fairy.

"That's Baby Tooth," Jack said helpfully, unable to keep the faint smirk off his lips. She twisted towards him, and a strand of her fiery hair got caught over her temple. Her eyes hardened as she regarded him. He frowned.

"Can you understand me?" He asked and took a crouched step forward. She stiffened and when Jack was seriously considering if she was a mute, she opened her mouth.

"What do you want?" She said in a clipped voice, and Jack caught the hint of a foreign accent. Hm, hadn't been expecting that.

"What do _I_ want?" He echoed, taken off guard.

She stared at him with a blank expression. Madly enough, Jack had the intense desire to brush back the hair that lay caught on her forehead; she seemed oblivious to it. He didn't move, however, and she waited for him to speak with a fixed glare.

Jack didn't understand her abrupt hostility, but intrigued, continued.

"I - " He stopped, pursing his lips together as she drew up an eyebrow. He gave her a long look before he rose to the balls of his feet and decided on a new tactic. "I was looking for a fallen star. Saw it come off from beyond the ridge."

She peered up at him, her eyes nervously flickering to his staff.

"Is that meant to be amusing?"

He opened his mouth only to closed it again. Finally, "You're the star?" He asked, even if he was ninety-nine percent sure of her answer.

"Was I not what you were expecting?" Red's voice held an edge to it.

Jack smirked without humour. "Don't take this the wrong way, but I thought you'd be more of a rock." He demonstrated the height of said imagination, roughly around the size of big bellied North.

She blinked at him.

"_A rock_?" Now it was her turn to echo him; this time she scrunched her nose up as she did so. Jack flicked up a rock embedded in the crater's floor with his staff – it encrusted with frost immediately – and tossed it lightly to her. Obviously taken off guard, the rock ended up in her lap instead. She looked at it as if it was a roach.

"You know, brown, heavy occasionally dirty. A rock."

"If you wanted a _rock_," She stated dryly, "Why did you so rudely summon me from my home above?"

As she spoke, she had tried gathering her skirts to rise, unable to stand being lower than him. Unfortunately she lost her balance due to shaky legs. In a flash of cold air, Jack swept her up into his arms to keep her from falling. She clutched onto him involuntarily before she let out a hiss. "You're bloody well freezing!" She struggled backwards from him and knocked into the side of the crater.

Jack pulled back his outstretched arm, a boyish grin creeping onto his face. "Never thought I'd hear a star swear." Her aforementioned words echoed in his mind and he dropped the playfulness. "Wait, you think _I _summoned you?" He pointed to himself with an exaggerated finger.

She narrowed her eyes at him, gesturing around at the surrounding crater before folding her arms for warmth. "You _were_ the only one waiting for me."

"Because I wanted to catch – " He clamped his mouth shut when he caught her eyes narrow. That wouldn't be a good idea to admit. Jack continued with a more serious expression, "I promise I'm not the one who summoned you here. I didn't even know you could." He said honestly. Did the other guardians know about this?

"You didn't?" Something softened in her eyes as she spoke.

"No. I just found you, that's all."

"Oh." She rubbed her arms together, her bottom lip caught in-between her teeth as she cast an awkward look around them.

"I'm Jack Frost." He said after a beat of heavy silence. Her eyes flickered uneasily to his and kept quiet; obviously, she didn't trust him fully just yet.

Unfazed, he chuckled lightly, offering her an arm so that she could stand properly. She eyed it conspicuously. "This would be the time for you to tell me your name," He whispered to her confidentiality before nodding for her to take the offered arm. She regarded him with a confused expression and his grin dropped. "Has no one ever offered you an arm before?"

"Would it surprise you if I said no?"

Jack sighed, "I suppose it shouldn't. Here," He gingerly took her hand, his eyes asking permission as he did so, and wound her arm around his sweater. She sucked in a breath.

"Why are you so _cold_? I thought humans were supposed to be warm." She awkwardly settled against him as she moved away from the steep edge she had been resting on previously. Jack shrugged.

"I'm not human - I'm Jack Frost." When she continued to give him a blank look, he shook his head. "I'm a spirit, winter spirit. I bring blizzards and snow days... and if the name didn't give it away, frost." He gave her a mischievous grin.

"Ah," She nodded, although he could tell it was more for his benefit. The red head pushed herself away from Jack in an attempt to stand on her own. "You're a winter spirit."

"Question is, if you don't know who I am, how can you see me?" His eyes studied her as she managed to take a steady step, her attention obviously not on him.

"This isn't too hard!" She exclaimed in delight, ignoring Jack's question. He couldn't help but laugh.

"I'm guessing there isn't much gravity where you're from?" She glanced up at him and shook her head once.

"Not like this," She said absently as she concentrated on her balance. She began to become more confident, her dress rippling between her legs as she broke off from him. The silver in her dress scattered reflections of light into the night's shadows as she moved.

"You're like a fish out of water - like a mermaid. You_ sure_ you are a star?"

She turned to face him, albeit a bit wobbly. "Did you not see me fall from the sky?"

"Sarcasm, red." He said with a breathy laugh. She gave him an estranged look before twirling on her heel. "Whoa, easy there. Don't run before you can walk." Jack warned with a grin. He had not spoken a moment too soon when she tripped on her skirts and went flying. Jack caught her by his staff, and with a quick flick she was wrapped in a cold arm. The star girl blinked up at him, her face flushed.

"Clara," She blurted unceremoniously.

"What?"

"My name, Jack, it's Clara."

"Now, was that so hard?"

A cool breeze tickled her neck as they studied each other, the moonlight bathing them both in a blue glow. It was Jack who broke the spell, his body suddenly tense.

"Clara," He said testing out her name, "I don't want to alarm you, but I think we should start worrying about who summoned you."

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A/N: And next chapter things will get a bit more suspenseful, I swear! Reviews are always welcomed my dears! :)


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